Production of pre-cooked sliced bacon



Feb. 25, 1969 R. P. NELSON PRODUCTION OF PRE-COOKED SLICED BACONOriginal Filed Jan. 6, 1961 INVENTOR- United States Patent 3,429,713PRODUCTION OF PRE-COOKED SLICED BACON Richard P. Nelson, La Grange,Ill., assignor to Armour and Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation ofDelaware Original application Jan. 6, 1961, Ser. No. 81,040, now PatentNo. 3,256,803, dated June 21, 1966. Divided and this application Feb.28, 1966, Ser. No. 612,283 US. Cl. 99107 1 Claim Int. Cl. A473 35/00ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A process for cooking meat pieces by radiantheating in which the meat pieces are cooked first on one side and thenon the other while being confined under pressure during the process.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICA- TIONS This application is adivision of my application Ser. No. 81,040 filed Jan. 6, 1961, nowPatent No. 3,256,803, issued June 21, 1966.

This invention relates to the production of pre-cooked sliced bacon andother meats. The invention is particularly useful in the controlledcooking and chilling and packing of meat pieces such as bacon slices,pork sausage, pork steaks, ham steaks, and the like, while preservingthe pieces in their desired shape and dimensions. For the purpose ofclarity, the invention will be described herein in connection with thecooking of sliced bacon.

In the prior practice of cooking bacon slices, etc., and particularlywhere the slices are confined during cooking, it is found that therendered fat tends to remain on and saturate the product, blocking theradiant heat employed for cooking the product, and the final productdoes not have the taste of kitchen-fried bacon. Further, successiveseparate steps in the cooking operation increase cost and the finalproduct lacks uniformity. I have discovered that sliced bacon, and thelike, can be effectively cooked in a continuous manner between meshconveyors in which the conveyors are reversed in direction to bring theproduct first under the source of radiant energy and then under anotheror the same source, thus exposing first one side of the slices forcooking and then the other side of the slices for cooking, the renderedfat being removed and collected immediately during the cooking steps,the final product tasting like conventional kitchen-fried bacon. In suchan operation, means are provided for varying the heat impinged upon theproduct, for confining the product during the initial and reversedtravel, and finally chilling and delivering the cooked product in thedesired shingled or separated relation for packing.

A primary object, therefore, of the present invention is to provide amethod and means for accomplishing the above desired results. Anotherobject is to provide a method and means for providing controlled cookingof bacon slices whereby the rendered fat is collected first from oneside and then from the other side of the bacon slices or other product,while preventing the saturation of the product with fat and retainingthe product in the desired shape. A further object is to provideapparatus and method procedure whereby bacon slices, and the like, maybe carried continuously in one direction under a source of radiant heatand then, upon reversal in another parallel path below a source ofradiant heat, whereby the sides of the slices are successively cookedwhile collecting separately the rendered fat and then, after cooking,the final product is chilled and delivered in a shingled or spacedrelation for final packaging. Other specific objects and advantages willappear as the specification proceeds.

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The invention is shown, in an illustrative embodiment, by theaccompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a broken side elevational viewshowing apparatus embodying my invention and which may be employed inthe practice of my new process; and FIG. 2, a detail sectional view, thesection being taken as indicated at line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

In the illustration given and as shown more particularly in FIG. 1, atake-away or grading conveyor 10 brings bacon slices indicated by thenumeral 11 from a slicing machine (not shown) to the first wire meshconveyor 12 supported adjacent to the conveyor 10 by the roller 13 andby other rollers providing the continuous travel illustrated in detailin FIG. 1. A second wire mesh conveyor 14 is drawn downwardly toward theconveyor 12 and is supported in close relation thereto by the roller 15so as to provide a hold-down belt over the bacon strips 11 and therebymaintaining them in the desired shape during the subsequent treatingoperations. The second conveyor 14 is also supported by other rollers toform the continuous travel illustrated in detail in FIG. 1. The twoconveyors 12 and 14 pass under quartz lamp heaters 16 so that theradiant heat impinges upon the upper side of the slices 11 to cook themduring the first stage of horizontal travel. About each pair oftransverse quartz heater tubes 16 extends a reflector 17 which ispreferably provided with a non-corrosive reflective surface such as aplating of gold or other suitable reflective material. As stated, theheating element 16 is preferably a quartz lamp which has the importantadvantage of retaining substantially no heat, so that upon the breakingof the circuit, no residual heat remains in the element. By the use ofsuch a lamp, it is possible to control with great accuracy thetemperature in each portion of the treating passage. As an example ofthe quartz lamp, I may refer to GE Quartz Lamp Type T3, 1000 watt, 240volt. I prefer to employ lamps which will apply approximately kw. ofheat in the 30 foot passage forming the lower path of treatmentillustrated in FIG. 1. By backing such a lamp with an optically correct,high specular reflector for maximum utilization and uniform distributionof the radiant energy, it is found that effective heating is broughtabout instantly upon the closing of the circuit, while substantially noresidual heat remains in the elements after the circuit is opened.

Supported below belts 14 and 12 as they move together under the lowergroup of heating tubes 16, is a trough or pan 18 for collecting therendered fat during the first path of travel during which the baconslices are exposed at their upper sides to radiant heat energy. Thebelts 12 and 14 pass together halfway around the roller 19 and then belt12 is reversed over roller 20 in a direction opposite to that of thebelt 14 and the reversed belt 14, which now serves as the carrier of thebacon slices, moves forwardly in a horizontal plane below the uppergroup of heater tubes 16. As the belt 14 moves forwardly under the uppergroup of heater tubes, a third belt 21, guided upon rollers, is broughtdown over the belt 14 and the bacon slices thereon to hold the slicesfirmly against the belt 14. The uncooked sides of the bacon slices arenow exposed for cooking and the rendered fat is collected by the trough22 which extends below the upper group of heater tubes. The two belts 14and 21 are now brought halfway around the roller 23 and the belt 14 isreversed laterally over roller 24 as indicated in FIG. 1. The baconslices, which have now been cooked upon both sides, are carriedforwardly on the belt 21 and compressed air is discharged through theperforated pipe 25 to remove any free fat or moisture from the baconslices. The conveyor 21 carries the bacon slices through a chiller 26 inwhich refrigerated air reduces the temperature of the bacon to thatdesired for packing. From the chiller, the belt 21 passes over areversing roller 27 and the bacon is dischraged onto a take-away belt 28which may be driven at a slower rate of travel than that of belt 21 soas to form the slices 11 in shingled arrangement or at a faster rate oftravel to space the slices on the belt 28. The slices are delivered bybelt 28 to a packing section, where the slices may be vacuum packed orpacked in any other desired form of package.

Any suitable cleaning apparatus may be provided for cleaning the wiremesh belts or conveyors. As indicated, the conveyor 14 may be subjectedto a detergent or any washing fluid discharged from the shower head 29and then, after being subjected to scrub brushes 30, may be subjectedagain to rinse Water from the shower 31. The entire cleaning apparatusis indicated by the numeral 32. A similar cleaning apparatus, indicatedby the numeral 32a, is provided for washing the mesh conveyor 12, theapparatus being provided with a detergent head 29a, scrub brushes 30a,and a rinse head 31a. A similar washing apparatus 3217 may be providedfor the third belt 21,

using a detergent shower head 29b, scrub brushes 30b, and a rinse head315. In such cleaning operations, a cleaning solution or detergent maybe discharged upon the screen conveyor and the conveyor then scrubbed bybrushes, and finally the detergent solution is washed away and thescreen rinsed by rinse solution from the final spray head. In suchoperations, it will be understood that the detergent or washing orrinsing solutions may be recycled, screened, skimmed and reused.

Any suitable means for driving the conveyors may be provided. In theillustration given, a belt-equipped motor 33 drives the roller 20 andthe lower belt 12. The beltequipped motor 34 drives the roller 24 andthereby mesh conveyor 14, and the belt-equipped motor 35 drives theroller 27 and thereby the third belt 21.

OPERATION In the operation of the process and apparatus, smoked andmolded bacon bellies are sliced and the slices 11 permitted to fall inspaced relation on the take-away conveyor 10 in such a manner that thereis no overlapping or shingling of the individual slices. The take-awayconveyor 10 discharges the slices 11 upon the wire mesh conveyor 12,which transports them under the lower horizontal row of cooking elements16. As the wire mesh conveyor 12 bearing the bacon slices progresses inthe direction toward the lower cooking section, a second Wire meshconveyor 14 is brought down into contact with the bacon slices 11 onconveyor 12. The function of the second conveyor 14 at this stage is tohold the bacon slices in place, thereby preventing distortion of theslices in the cooking operation.

The two conveyors then enter a tunnel type oven 16a, passing under thelower bank of cooking elements where the quartz lamps or tubes 16furnish radiant heat for the cooking operation. The lamps are controlledin an on-and- 01f system so as to provide any desired temperature. Forexample, the operator may utilize only 75% of the cooking elements, orany desired number of the cooking elements, for a given period of time,thus controlling accurately the heat imparted to the slices 11 as theytravel through the cooking tunnel in the lower portion of the oven 16a,where the top sides of the slices are cooked and the heat-rendered fatis drained away and collected in pan 18.

The two conveyors 12 and 14, having progressed through the length of thecooking tunnel 16a, now rotate 180 in a vertical plane so as to reversethe bacon slices and to place them upon conveyor 14 with the uncookedsides of the bacon slices now exposed to the upper bank of heating tubes16. The conveyor 12 is now withdrawn over the drive roller 20 and a newconveyor 21 becomes the hold-down screen as the bacon slices are movedunder the upper bank of heating tubes 16. The rendered fat from theproduct drains away and is recovered in pan 22.

The two conveyors 14 and 21 pass around the reversing roller 23 and theconveyor 14 is then withdrawn over drive roller 24, leaving the meshconveyor 21 now as the conveyor for the slices 11.

Excess liquefied fat, etc. remaining upon the cooked slices is removedby the air blast from the pipe 25 and the cooked slices now pass througha chilling tunnel 26, where they are chilled through exposure tocirculated refrigerated air. Conveyor 21 now passes around the drivenroller 37 and discharges the slices upon the conveyor 28 which may bedriven at a lower rate of travel than that of conveyor 21 to cause theslices to be arranged in shingled formation or driven at a faster speedto separate the slices, and the slices are then packaged under vacuum orin any other suitable means.

Any suitable means for controlling the operation of the heatingelements, namely, switch means for turning the elements on or off forselected periods of time, may be employed. For example, cam shafts foropening and closing circuits in a predetermined sequence may beemployed. For example, the operation may be set for automatic control sothat the lamps in the lower bank are on 75% of the time during thepassage of the slices through the lower leg of travel, while the lampsmay be on 60% or" the time in the upper bank during the passage of thebacon slices through the upper parallel leg of travel.

A specific example of the process and apparatus operation may bedescribed as follows:

Example I A 14-pound bacon belly which had been cured, smoked andmolded, was sliced and the slices laid out on the takeaway conveyor 10as shown in FIG. 1, and carried through the apparatus in the mannerillustrated in FIG. 1, the slices moving at the rate of 30 feet perminute. The lamps, which can apply approximately kw. of heat in the30foot pass under the lower bank of heating elements, were controlled sothat the lamps were on 75 of the time during the pass below the lowerbank of heating elements. The bacon slices, upon reversal, were thensubjected to heat from the upper bank of heating elements, which were on65% of the time during the second stage of travel. The bacon slices,which have now received an internal heat of approximately 200 F., weresubjected to refrigerated air to bring them down to a suitable packingtemperature. The bacon, at this temperature and while still hot, waspacked in vacuum cans for shipment.

While, in the apparatus described, the heating elements 16 are arrangedin pairs, it will be understood that a single heating element or anumber of elements may be employed with each reflector 17. Further, thearrangement of the heating elements may be varied and the location ofthe cooling means may also be modified. While a single source of heatmay be employed, I prefer to employ the two parallel sources arranged asillustrated in FIG. 1 for successive cooking of the slices so that oneside of each slice is cooked during the first pass below the lower bankof heating elements, and then the other side of the bacon slice iscooked during the second pass, so that the fat leaves instantly in eachoperation and does not tend to saturate the product or to form globulesof fat which block radiant heat, while at the same time producing abacon product having the taste of kitchen-fried or fresh fried bacon.

While, in the foregoing specification, 1 have shown a specific structureand procedure in considerable detail for the purpose of illustrating anembodiment of the invention, it will be understood that such details maybe varied widely by those skilled in the art without departing from thespirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. A process for cooking bacon slices comprising pass ing the baconslices in one direction along a first path below a source of radiantheat while applying a restraining pressure to the surfaces of the baconslices whereby one surface of said bacon slices is cooked and therendered fat is removed therefrom, inverting said bacon slices andreversing their direction of travel while continuing said restrainingpressure thereon along a second path in said reverse direction below asecond source of radiant heat whereby the second surface of said baconslices is cooked and the rendered fat is removed therefrom.

References Cited HYMAN LORD, Primary Examiner.

